The Gazebo
by Hope Mikaelson-Clarke
Summary: Disclaimer: I don't own Vampires Diaries. This is just a little story of how I would have liked to have seen 4x18, American Gothic, happen.


The Gazebo

Chapter 1: The Truth

 **Summary:** Elijah knew that it was Elena, and not Katherine, that stood before him. But he needed to tell himself that it was Katherine for no other reason than to not get his hopes up only to be let down.

 **Disclaimer:** I don't own Vampires Diaries. This is just a little story of how I would have liked to have seen 4x18, American Gothic, happen.

Elijah stood across the street from the gazebo where he was meant to meet with Katarina for a few minutes before going over. Even from a distance, he knew that the woman waiting for him was Elena, and not, in fact, Katarina, but Elijah couldn't let his hopes rise that Elena knew it was him that she was supposed to be meeting in Katarina's place and had insisted on coming herself. She was with Stefan, or was it Damon these days? She wasn't interested in being with him. And knowing Katarina as well as he did, Elijah knew that she wouldn't have put his full name down in her calendar, and she wouldn't give his name to Elena, so there was no way that the woman who held his heart without even knowing it, knew who she was about to come face to face with.

As he crossed the street, Elijah frowned. Elena's heartbeat was different. Slower than the last time he had seen her. What had the Salvatore brothers down to her? She was never quiet about the fact that she did not want to be a vampire, so why was she standing before him as one? Elijah was furious. Furious at Stefan and Damon for not protecting Elena properly, and furious at himself for not taking her away from Mystic Falls after their first meeting. She would have still been human if he had taken her away. But what was done was done. Elena was now a vampire, and if she had any knowledge that he was who she was meeting, then maybe there was a chance that they could leave together. But still, he needed to play it off like he wasn't aware that she wasn't Katarina.

"Katarina."

The name fell from Elijah's lips before he could stop it, and the look on Elena's face as she turned to face him answered his own question. She was surprised to see him, which meant that she didn't know who she was going to be meeting. And in that split second, her surprise would have given her away if he hadn't already known the truth. Elijah had to give her credit though, because after her surprised expression as she said his name, she did her best to slip into being Katarina.

"You're a little late, aren't you?" Elena asked.

"You colored your hair." Elijah said with a warm smile as he closed the distance between them and ran his fingers through her hair. "I like it."

"Thank you. It's actually..." Elena started to say, failing at staying in character, but was cut off when Elijah pressed his lips to hers in what he saw was a long overdue first kiss.

Elijah could feel the surprise seize up in Elena's body before she started to kiss him back, and he couldn't help but wrap an arm around her waist to pull her body flush with his. Something else was off with her, Elijah just couldn't put his finger on it. When he pulled away from the kiss, ready to look into her eyes and call her by her real name, Elijah was taken aback by the unshed tears that shone in her dark brown eyes as she pushed him away from her.

"No, no, no, no!" Elena exclaimed as she turned away from him.

"What happened to you, Elena?" Elijah asked. It wasn't how he had wanted to speak the truth about her identity, but being a vampire clearly wasn't the only thing that had changed for her since they last saw each other. "What did the Salvatore brothers do to you?"

"It wasn't their fault. If anything, blame your damn brother and sister for all of this. Oh, and your beloved _Katarina_." Elena bit out, trying desperately to push her emotions back down.

"What do Niklaus, Rebekah and Katarina have to do with this?" Elijah questioned.

"Klaus was literally using me as a human blood bag, draining me of my blood to make his stupid hybrid army, and when my friends saved me, I ended up hitting my head on the stairs, causing a brain hemorrhage. I was given vampire blood at the hospital by Meredith Fell to heal me, but that night, Rebekah ran Matt's truck off of Wickery Bridge. Stefan tried to save me first, but I insisted that he save Matt. By the time he got back to me, I was dead. But because of the blood that Meredith had given me, which was Damon's by the way, I came back as a vampire. And then Katherine went and killed my brother." Elena poured out.

"Damon compelled you to turn off your emotions, didn't he?" Elijah asked.

"Not exactly. I was sired to him, Elijah. He used the Sire Bond to get me to turn them off." Elena replied bitterly.

"And now they're coming back. Because you have feelings for me that you tried so desperately to bury since we met." Elijah stated, a small smile forming on his face.

"Why are you so happy about this?" Elena snapped.

"Because, Elena. I have denied every impulse, every feeling, I have had for you since the beginning, out of respect for your relationship with Stefan, and even Damon. Denied them all because I didn't think that there was even a remote chance that you reciprocated those feelings." Elijah replied. "To know that it was because of those reciprocated feelings that your emotions are coming back because of a single kiss, it gives me hope, Elena." He said.

"You're an asshole." Elena muttered.

"That might be true, but other than trapping you in the tunnels with Rebekah, have I ever done anything to purposefully hurt you?" Elijah questioned. "Have I ever gone back on my word when anything other than my family was at stake?" He continued.

"No, but you still don't have to be happy about me being an emotional mess." Elena responded with a frown.

"Come away with me, Elena. We can go somewhere far away from all of the turmoil that has befallen you. Anywhere that you want to go. I can help you." Elijah offered.

"You aren't wanting the cure that Katherine has?" Elena asked.

"Katarina is not important to me. She was merely a placeholder when I thought I couldn't have you." Elijah replied.

"Huh... so this is what being the first doppelgänger choice feels like." Elena muttered to herself. "Fine... I'll go with you. On one condition." She said.

"What is that?"

"Help me start a brand new life. New name, new family, the works."

"What new name did you have in mind, because I quite like your name."

"Yours."

"Elena Gilbert are you asking me to marry you?"

"Yes. Once we find a place that's far away from here and we settle down, I want to marry you and be Elena Mikaelson."

"Done. We shall leave all of this behind, and you will be my wife." Elijah said with a smile. "Now if you can keep it together long enough to get to my car, you can let your emotions wash over you in private." He said as he lightly took her hand in his and pulled her towards him before wiping a few stray tears from her cheeks.


End file.
